Why does some canned fruit float - and how to prevent it from floating

Too much sugar (it's the density or fruit v. solution, fruit is lighter
than the syrup ) - Using a heavy syrup (a medium or light syrup is
recommended).

Packing fruit too loosely in the jar. If jars are packed too loosely or
if air remains in the tissues of the fruit after processing. Pack the
fruit tightly in jars without crushing it.

Hot Pack or Raw Pack

It can
also be due to the canning method - raw v. hot packing.

Raw-packing is
the practice of filling jars tightly with freshly prepared, but unheated
food. Such foods, especially fruit, will float in the jars. The entrapped
air in and around the food may cause floating and discoloration within 2 to
3 months of storage. Raw-packing is more suitable for vegetables processed
in a pressure canner.

Hot-packing is
the practice of heating freshly prepared food to boiling, simmering it 2 to
5 minutes, and promptly filling jars loosely with the boiled food. Whether
food has been hot-packed or raw-packed, the juice, syrup, or water to be
added to the foods should also be heated to boiling before adding it to the
jars. This practice helps to remove air from food tissues, shrinks food,
helps keep the food from floating in the jars, increases vacuum in sealed
jars, and improves shelf life. Preshrinking food permits filling more food
into each jar. Hot-packing is the best way to remove air and is the
preferred pack style for foods processed in a boiling-water canner. At
first, the color of hot-packed foods may appear no better than that of
raw-packed foods, but within a short storage period, both color and flavor
of hot-packed foods will be superior.

Here
are some ways to help prevent fruit floating:

Pack fruit solidly into the jar, as closely as possible without
crushing.

Use light to medium syrups instead of a heavy syrup. If you are canning
without a sugar syrup, the fruit should be firm and just ripe. Pack raw
fruit firmly into the jar and cover with boiling water or unsweetened
fruit juice. For hot-packed fruit, heat the fruit in water or
unsweetened apple juice; then pack the hot fruit and syrup into the
clean jars.

Dark colored fruit?

Note that any portions of fruit that are above the liquid in the jar will
darken over time (surface oxidation), but these portions are still safe.
Because they are visually unappealing, some people just cut the dark
sections off and discard them.

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